Becoming Tai
by soojinah
Summary: The memories of the Digital World has been erased from the world, including the Digidestined. Until one day, a concussion jars memories of the Chosen's Adventures in the Digital World for Yagami Taichi, a once promising college graduate now living with his parents, job searching and to top it all off, diagnosed as a schizophrenic! Coming of Age. MICHI
1. Chapter 1

**_Becoming Tai_**

 _A/N: So I started another story :) This is for one of my editors who requested a Taichi-centric fic where he is a normal person, going through extraordinary circumstances but still in a very ordinary way. This is going to be very John Greene-like according to my editors who have already read through some of the chapters so I hope you guys enjoy reading it. I know I had fun writing it!_

 _This is for my lovely little friends now graduating high school-it's graduation season in America, and one of my girls that I used to babysit is all grown up! She's actually graduating in around an hour! Sniff, sniff :)_

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I wish I did, then I wouldn't have to work! (or work in healthcare :T although I am thankful I have job at all in this shitty economy, even for nurses!)

* * *

It was a pretty shitty day for 22 year old Yagami Taichi.

There was no way around it. His life sucked.

As if it wasn't bad enough not getting a call back from the ten potential companies he'd applied to, the one interview he went to declined to hire him because he was "over qualified."

What did that even mean?!

How did one become "over qualified" for anything?!

It was frustrating. More so since his childhood friends Takenouchi Sora and Izumi Koushiro were both hired by large corporations. And they didn't even have time to see him anymore.

Heck, Izumi was actually hired by an _American_ company somewhere in a place called Langley, wherever that was.

 _And to think I was once the most promising kid in school._

Taichi scoffed at the irony and angrily loosened his necktie before taking it off entirely. He was tempted to throw the damn strip of fabric into a public trashcan but decided against it.

He would need the tie for his next interview. God willing.

And he couldn't afford to buy another one.

It was starting to get embarrassing, having to get allowance from his parents, never mind having to move back in.

The weather was starting to get really warm. It was mid May and everyone was transitioning to summer and a group of kids-middle schoolers, it looked like- were playing soccer in the park.

Taichi wearily set his leather briefcase onto a bench and spent a few minutes watching the kids kick the ball around.

Hmph. They sucked.

Wow. What was _that?_ That can't even be counted as a pass. Whoa, kid! It's called dribbling! Use the inner sides of the foot, idiot! The _sides_! Argh!

 _That's it. These kids need someone to teach them how to play properly._

Soccer was an art to Taichi and what these boys were doing to his sport? Travesty, a goddamn travesty.

"Hey kids! What are you doing?!" Taichi yelled at the group as he briskly jogged towards the green.

A couple of them stopped to stare at him, their mouths agape and their faces flushed from the heat and exertion.

"Playing soccer, what does it look like old man?!" One of them yelled and Taichi rolled his eyes at the jab as the rest of the group sniggered at the comment.

" _No,_ you guys are not playing soccer, you guys are chasing a ball around like a bunch of blind monkeys." He expertly intercepted a pass a kid was trying to make and amazed the boys with his fancy footwork before kicking the ball straight past the goalie into the net.

" _That's_ soccer. You want to play, play properly."

His little act shut the group up and they looked at Taichi with renewed respect and admiration shining in their eyes.

He turned to the pudgy goalie staring at him from the net and motioned for him to throw the ball over to him.

The kid turned to fetch the goal and Taichi smirked. He was starting to feel good about himself again, confident say.

The kid set the ball on the ground and reared his little body back to kick the ball back to Taichi. Taichi concentrated on the fall of the kid's leg and watched as the foot came in contact with the white and black ball, the ball flying towards him with surprisingly good velocity and-

"Yagami Taichi! What are you doing?"

Huh?

It was that brief break in concentration that allowed the ball to come into direct contact with Taichi's head, causing him to immediately black out.

* * *

"Whhups. He's coming around." A vaguely familiar voice announced. Taichi had a pounding pressure in the space between his temples and he wanted that slightly whiny voice to just shut up.

"Huh. So he is. I'll call the resident, kid. Why don't you assess him and you can go over your findings with the doctor?"

 _SHUT. UP._

WOW. Not only did he have the worst headache in the world-much worse than the hangover he had after graduation- the nausea rolling up from his stomach, through his esophagus and up the throat and his mou-

"Ugh! He vomited!" _Yeah, you think Jyou?!_

 _Somethings never change. Jyou will always be Jyou._

Wait.

Hold up.

Taichi groaned as he pried his eyes open. Standing before Taichi and frantically wiping at himself with a wipe was a tall bespectacled man with navy blue hair.

Curious. Taichi could have sworn he didn't know the man. But he was so...familiar!

He shut his eyes tightly and rolled over onto his side. Despite the pounding in his head, he couldn't help concentrating on where he'd seen that man.

A strange image popped into his head. Actually, dream sequence seemed more apt to describe the acid trip his mind was taking him.

Seven kids. At summer camp. Suddenly transported into the Digital World. Digimon. Saving the world.

No wait, it was him and Sora and Koushiro for sure. And...Ishida Yamato?

 _Why am I dreaming about that moody douchebag?_

Taichi, Sora and Koushiro had attended middle school and high school with the blonde and while they were not in the same classes, they were friendly enough. Besides, the blonde was pretty popular in school for being in a band and being 'handsome.' Anyways, point was, Taichi knew the guy enough to recognize the taller of the two blondes was Ishida.

The smaller of the blondes was Takaishi Takeru, also known as the _younger sister's boyfriend._

Oh hey! Hikari is part of this too, only she came about halfway into the whole mess.

There were 2 other kids there too. And even though Taich could have sworn he never met them, he knew who they were instantly. Tachikawa Mimi and Kido Jyou.

Kido Jyou!

That was the guy now attending to him!

Taichi's eyes shot open again and he bolted to a sitting position. Only to regret it instantly as a sharp pain lanced through his head.

"Whoa! Calm down, mister!" Jyou gently pushed down Tai and Taichi grinned crazily at the navy haired man.

"Kido Jyou! Nice to see you again, man!"

"Ehh? Do I know you?" Confusion spread across the handsome man's face and he nervously pushed his glasses up with two fingers deftly pressed against the bridge of his horn-rimmed frames.

The face was much older than the twelve year old in the dream but it was definitely Kido Jyou.

"Yeah! Can't explain it at the moment but we saved the world together!" Confusion turned to alarm before settling into amusement.

The curtain separating Taichi's emergency room bed from the patient next to him was drawn and an older version of Jyou- _Kido Shin_ , Taichi's mind told him, walked in.

"So, kiddo, what do we have here?" The elder Kido grinned at his younger brother, pleased at himself for the corny pun on their name.

"Well, we have a 22 year old male with a traumatic head injury and subsequent loss of consciousness. CT scans do not indicate any fractures or swelling, but he is presenting with classic symptoms of concussion." Jyou turned to his brother and lowered his voice.

"He vomited as soon as he came to and he's obviously confused and delirious. He claimed to know me and said we saved the world." Shin raised an eyebrow.

"Well, do you know him? Did you ever save the world with him?" _Why didn't anyone believe him?_

"Yes! We know each other, I swear! I know you too, Shin! I swear I'm not confused!" Both brothers stared at the man sitting up and yelling on the ER stretcher.

"Yeap. I'm inclined to agree with you, Jyou. Let's admit him for concussion and altered mental status."

"I have to admit, Dr. Kido, I'm impressed he was able to guess _both_ of our names correctly."

"Nah, he probably read our names on our badges."

"Hmph. You sure about that Shin?"

"Hey! Let's keep it Dr. Kido while at work, kiddo."

"Ok, _Dr. Kido,_ tell me this much. How did a patient with a diagnosis of concussion and altered mental status read the tiny print on our badges in seconds? That's a feat without the concussion diagnosis."

"Creepy. Who knows, maybe he's telling truth." The brothers glanced at each other, both struggling to stifle their grin as once again their big haired patient protested that he really _did_ know them both.

"I am telling the truth." Taichi mumbled to himself as the doctor and the med student took their leave.

* * *

"Tai! Oh my god, Tai, I'm so sorry!" The brunette smiled despite the pounding in his temples.

It was his ginger friend, Sora, and she rushed over to his side carrying his briefcase and other personal effects in a standard issue plastic hospital bag.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you like that! I was just surprised to see you at the field, and you were in your suit and the kids…"

Taichi waved his hand at her and Sora reached for it with both of hers.

"Don't worry about it Sora. I'll be ok. Must've scared the kids though, huh?" He grinned at her worried expression.

She smiled, her ruby eyes softening a bit as she idly rubbed his hand.

"The kids were pretty shocked, yeah. But I was scared shitless. You just dropped to the floor when that ball hit you and all I could think about was how that actress died from a head injury."

"Yeah well. I'm ok. The doctors here did some scans and tests and they told me other than a concussion, I seem to be ok."

Sora rolled her eyes.

"Yagami Taichi. A concussion is nothing to joke about. What if your-"

Taichi raised his other hand to stop her from nagging him further and smiled uneasily as he again thought of his strange dream.

It had seemed _so real._ Almost like memories more so than a dream.

He had to ask Sora.

"Sora. Tell me honestly. Does the name Biyomon mean anything to you?" Taichi bit his lower lip gingerly as he carefully scrutinized the redhead.

Sora cocked her head to one side as she furrowed her brows thoughtfully. After a moment she slowly began to shake her head.

"No...Can't say it does. Sounds like the name of a Pokemon or something. Why?"

A knot formed in Taichi's stomach and he tried hard to cover up his disappointment.

"Do you remember summer camp when we were eleven?"

"Summer camp?"

"Yeah, remember? It was me and you and Koushiro and four other kids that year."

"Tai...that was the year summer camp got cancelled because of that freak snow storm. Remember? We stayed one afternoon and then our parents picked us up that evening." She eyed him cautiously, her voice tinged with worry.

"Yeah...I-I remember. Just wanted to confirm something. Listen, I think I'm going to take a nap, my head is pounding."

The strange look disappeared from Sora's eyes as she stood up, straightening her blouse.

"Yeah, sure, no problem. Um, your mother is on her way and I also called Hikari so they should be here soon."

Taichi smiled at her and reached for her hand affectionately.

"Thanks, Sora. I appreciate it."

She blushed, her cheeks almost matching the fiery red of her hair.

"Don't mention it. I'll stop by tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure thing. Although I'm sure they'll discharge me soon."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll call ahead."

Taichi nodded as his friend took her leave. He frowned as he again thought of the Digital World and of the strange memories he had of the place.

 _I am so sure it happened. Why doesn't anyone remember?_

The brunette flipped over onto his back as he thought of their adventures. Agumon, Gennai, File Island, defeating all those evil Digimon- _You can't just make this shit up. Not even on acid._

Taichi did have to admit, their adventures in the Digital World would make a pretty awesome story.

 _Maybe I should write a book or draw a manga or something. Make some money for once._

Ha.

 _I guess I'll just have to find the rest of the kids, ask them if they recall. I'm not fucking crazy._

* * *

 _Short introductory chapter, next one will be longer._

 _Also since I refuse to write a story without Mimi coming out (she's my girl!) she will be making her appearance soon!_

 _Thanks for reading and please R &R :)_


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey guys! Thanks so much for all the awesome reviews, follows and favorites! :D They are very, very much appreciated and definitely helps to inspire me to write!_

 _Hope you guys enjoy!_

 _Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon-although a girl can dream!_

 **Becoming Tai: Mimi**

* * *

Taichi watched as the clear liquid dripped into a small container half filled with the liquid before it travelled down the clear plastic tubing right into his arm.

He guessed it was water. Or at least he hoped it was and not some crazy medication.

After a good nights rest and a clear liquid diet since his concussion yesterday, Taichi felt pretty good. Except for the slight bit of residual nausea.

Oh and the fact that he was _crazy._

His mother confirmed that Taichi did not in fact attend summer camp that year and that he was brought home the first day due to the snowstorm.

Hikari also denied knowing anything about a Gatomon or the Digital World. Although it would explain why Hikari had such an affinity for cats.

 _There's no way I could have made it all up now, is there?_

The brunette sat up in bed, in a mortifyingly embarrassing hospital gown-those didn't close properly in the back so getting to the bathroom was an ordeal even with his boxers on- while early awaiting Hikari's visit.

 _Taichi, I'll be back tomorrow. Sleep well,_ Hikari had said as she leaned over to kiss his forehead.

 _Hikari, when you come tomorrow bring TK. I'd like to see him,_ he'd replied.

Taichi remembered the shock in his sister's pretty mahogany eyes as his words registered.

 _Why? You don't like TK, it wouldn't do you any good to get stressed out while you're trying to recover from a concussion._

 _Relax, Kari. I just want to ask him a few questions is all._

 _No. You're just going to argue with him again. And make him feel bad and unworthy. Honestly Tai, why don't you like him?_

 _I like him, he's a great kid! You guys were destined to be together, for fucks' sake, your Digimon are Angemon and Angewoman-_

 _What? Taichi, what are you talking about?_

 _Never mind. Just bring TK tomorrow, ok? It'll help me feel better._

In the end, Hikari had assented and now Taichi couldn't wait for that Takeru to get here.

He turned on his phone to check the time. It was eleven in the morning and it would be another hour and a half before the couple came by to see him.

Taichi leaned back on his pillow before getting out of the bed.

"Fuck it, I'm going to take a walk." The brunette fiddled with the IV tubing for a few seconds before managing to untangle the tubing and grasping the IV stand gingerly, Taichi shuffled out into the hallway.

Nurses, aides, residents and housekeepers milled about in the hallway. Holding his head high, Tai began to walk confidently towards the elevators.

He was going to sit outside. Get some sun. Like some elderly person.

On his way down, he saw the familiar form of Jyou walking with a group of other medical students.

"Jyou! Hey Jyou!" Taichi watched as the navy haired man froze in surprise before turning to face him. Tai grinned wildly as Jyou frowned and crouched down into his shoulders, trying to blend in with his shorter colleagues.

He then started to walk at a rapid pace, pushing his fellow medical students along with the clipboard in his hand.

Taichi frowned. It was pretty evident that the neurotic student did not want to speak with him and for some reason, that ticked off the already annoyed Taichi.

The brunette drew in a deep breath before yelling, quite loudly, into the hallway.

"HEY, JYOU KIDO WAIT FOR ME!" It seemed the entire hospital stopped what it was doing momentarily just to stare at Taichi and he scowled as he pulled his IV stand quickly behind him.

As he closed the distance between the two, Jyou turned to his colleagues and urged them to carry on before facing the bushy haired patient with an amused expression on his face.

"It certainly looks like you're feeling better, er," Jyou looked down at this notes and Taichi raised an eyebrow, "Yagami-san."

"Yeah well. I would feel better if you didn't try to ignore me. I thought you were my _doctor_ , what happened to being _reliable_ for your patients, huh?" Taichi peered into the navy haired man as he stressed the word _reliable._

Hmph. No reaction. _Well, no visible reaction anyway. Maybe Jyou got really good at hiding his feelings?_

The taller man rolled his eyes as he pushed his glasses up yet again.

"Well, I'm not a doctor yet, Yagami-san-"

"Call me Tai. You used to call me Tai before, why go all formal now, Jyou?"

"Will you stop calling me that?! I'm not your friend, please refrain from being overly friendly, it's giving me anxiety!"

"Fine, fine! _Kido-san,_ let me just ask one question, ok? Do you remember anything about the Digital World? Does the name Gomamon mean anything to you? Remember fighting Malomyotismon? Or-"

Jyou placed a firm hand on Taichi's shoulder, momentarily stopping the barrage of questions.

"Er, let me walk you back to your room and maybe we can talk in private?" A surge of hope went through Taichi as he looked up at Jyou's dark round eyes with happiness.

 _So he does remember! Thank god, I really thought I was losing it for a while there!_

"Oh wow, yeah. I knew you'd remember, Jyou, I mean you having the crest of reliability and everything. If I can't count on you then who else could I rely on? Thank god I'm not crazy, I'm not crazy, am I?"

* * *

Hikari wrung her hands nervously as she paced the floor outside a nondescript steel door. Takeru sighed as he reached for her hands.

"Don't worry, babe. People get admitted to the psych ward all the time, it doesn't mean they're crazy."

Hikari whipped her head around to glare at her tall, blonde haired blue eyed boyfriend, effectively smacking him across the mouth with her hair.

"Tai's not crazy! It's the concussion. I can't believe they admitted him to the psych ward for being a little confused and agitated."

The corners of Takeru's mouth tugged at a smile as he rubbed a hand against his mouth and chin where his girlfriend's hair hit him moments ago. She was so cute when she got mad, her warm chocolatey eyes flashing and her cheeks flushed a bright pink.

"I know, babe. But the doctors in these floors are more trained to deal with confusion and agitation so it might be better for him." _And who knows? Maybe they'll fix his issues so that the guy will actually like me for once._

Well, to be fair, Taichi and Takeru were actually friends once.

Until Tai discovered Takeru and Hikari sneaking in a kiss while cuddling together in her room.

Let's just say shit hit the fan that day and ever since then, Taichi's brow would furrow whenever he saw the blonde.

Not that Takeru and Taichi hated each other now. Taichi was just...protective.

 _Super protective._

And no guy would ever be good enough for Yagami Hikari in Tai's eyes.

Which was not very good for one Takaishi Takeru. Who happened to be in love with Hikari.

 _Sigh. Why the hell did he want to see me now?_

 _Oh god, I hope he doesn't try to beat me up again._

Takeru could almost feel the side of his jaw throbbing again. During a little argument while they were out having drinks (over something so trivial that Takeru had forgotten the cause already), Taichi had dealt him an uppercut that took weeks to recover.

Literally weeks.

Takeru had a bump the size of an egg for the first week and a nasty green-purple bruise for the next 4 weeks.

At least he became a master at applying foundation and concealer.

 _Har. Har._

Sighing, the blonde checked the time on his watch. It was five minutes to 7PM which was when psych patients were able to have visitors for 1 hour.

They had been planning on visiting Tai earlier on in the day but that plan fell through when Hikari's older brother managed to get himself admitted to the psychiatric floor.

Apparently, he was aggressive, agitated, confused and wandering through the hospital corridors when he confronted a bunch of medical students and held one hostage for close to an hour.

Honestly, Takeru wasn't _too_ surprised.

The blonde pursed his lips as he absentmindedly rubbed at his jaw. It was now a habit, formed after that infamous fight and TK swore the spot was still sore.

"Babe, it's time!" Hikari pulled at TK's hand as he grimaced.

After signing in at the nurses' station, the pair found themselves standing at the door of a stark white room.

It was a stark contrast from the warm shades of beige and gold in the regular hospital rooms and Takeru noticed there wasn't even any furniture-probably to prevent the patients from trying to kill themselves.

 _After all, this is a psych ward._

From beside him Hikari gasped, bringing her free hand to her mouth as her large eyes, glimmering with tears, took in the spartan furnishings.

"T-Tai?" She whispered, her voice strained with emotion.

The mass in bed topped with a shock of wild chestnut hair shifted and Takeru could just barely make out the face of his girlfriend's older brother.

"Hey Kari. Hello to you, TK." _Wow._ He sounded so...defeated?

"How are you feeling?" They entered the room, Kari taking a seat at the edge of his bed and Takeru sitting across from her in a padded chair.

"Eh." He stared up at the ceiling and the three sat in silence for a moment before Taichi turned to look at TK.

"Hey, TK. How's your brother doing?" Takeru was taken aback. What the fuck? Taichi never asked about Yamato before.

The blonde shifted in his chair, looking to Hikari first before answering.

"He's doing well. He's on tour with his band now but they'll be back in Tokyo at the end of the month."

Tai nodded before staring back up at the ceiling. Takeru craned his neck upwards to see if there was anything interesting there that kept the older male staring.

 _Nope. Not even a cobweb. Jesus, he's really acting weird._

"Tai? What did you want to ask TK? Remember? You wanted to ask him something." Hikari reached for Taichi's hand but he pulled away.

"Ah, forget it. Apparently I'm crazy so you're just wasting your time. Thanks for coming by, I guess I'll see you aro-"

"NO, Tai. You are NOT crazy. Just a little confused, come on, just ask TK."

Taichi hesitated before he suddenly sat up, his brown eyes intense as he studied the blonde.

"Takeru. Do you remember summer camp when you were eight? It was that year you went with Yamato and it snowed."

Sky blue eyes narrowed as Takeru brought a hand to his chin in thought. From across him, HIkari sighed exasperatedly as she stood up and began to pace the small room.

"Yeah. It was cancelled, wasn't it?"

Taichi nodded, encouraging the younger male to continue.

"But...we went to some place with monsters, right?" Taichi's eyes widened in surprise and Hikari actually stopped her pacing as she eyed her boyfriend suspiciously.

"Yeah, bro, you remember the Digital World too?"

Takeru pressed his lips into a thin line before nodding his head gravely, "Yeah, and I remember er, Angelmon and Angelwoman-"

" _Angemon_ and _Angewomon_ but close, go on," Taichi urged and Takeru fought to keep his composure. _I knew it was something to do with angels. Jesus, that was a close one._

Actually, he was going from what Hikari had told him yesterday and from what he overhead when the nurse was speaking with Hikari earlier.

But hey! _Taichi's actually really nice to me!_

"I thought it was a dream but then when I met Hikari in school, I _felt_ a connection with her. It was almost like me and Hikari were meant to be, right?"

Taichi grinned widely before jumping out of bed and he grabbed the blonde in a playful headlock, mussing up his golden hair.

"Aw, you little shit, I always knew I liked you! No wonder you and Hikari started dating!" Takeru laughed loudly, mostly out of relief and the petite brunette stared as her boyfriend and brother- previously not on speaking terms- joked around with each other.

She bit her lip, upset that Takeru had manipulated Taichi like so when he was just recovering from a traumatic head injury.

"Takeru. Can I speak to you for a moment?" Her quiet voice silenced the two and they stared at her blankly.

She motioned for him to follow her outside and Takeru shrugged as he followed.

* * *

"I can't believe you said all those things, you're clearly making it up!" A cute brunette girl was arguing loudly with a tall boy right outside of the psych ward.

"Yeah well, you saw how happy he got-"

"THAT'S BESIDES THE POINT. The point is, you manipulated my brother when he's clearly not well!"

Mimi grimaced as she managed to maneuver her many bags around them in the narrow corridor leading to the psych ward.

There was something very familiar about the pair and Mimi wished she could have seen the boy's face but the tone of the couple's conversation prevented any interaction with the two.

Her grandfather had been admitted to the psych ward for signs and symptoms of severe depression, anxiety and dementia and Mimi had taken it upon herself to visit him daily.

 _Or while I'm in Japan, obviously, I can't visit him from America, now can I? That would be absurd, the plane ride from JFK alone would be 16 hours! GOSH that's a long flight even when flying business!_

The petite brunette knew she should sign in with the nurses before setting her bags down in her grandfather's room but his room was on the way and there were so many bags she had to carry and they were _so heavy…_

 _Eh, if they say anything about not signing in, I'll bat my eyelashes and buy them donuts or something. Everyone loves food, especially nurses._

"Grandpa, I'm just going to leave these-oh!" Instead of her grandfather, there was a tall, dark stranger dressed smartly in a suit and tie, his broad shoulders and unkempt hair silhouetted beautifully against the backdrop of the setting sun.

"Sorry, wrong room!" She giggled nervously as she backed out of the room. The stranger came over to her in a few large strides and she felt her pulse quicken.

Good lord. He was beautiful up close as well. A beautiful golden bronze with kind brown eyes, thick brown hair and just the barest hint of scruff covering his jaw.

"Mimi?" He whispered. Oh. My. God. _He knows my name?!_

"I'm sorry and you are?"

"Tachikawa Mimi, right?" _What in the world? I'm sure I wouldn't have forgotten someone like him._

Come on, girl. Think, where do you know him from?

 _Maybe he's a friend of Yamato's?_ Mimi narrowed her eyes as she tilted her head, trying to think if she met this beautiful boy through her roommate.

After all, beautiful people were friends with beautiful people.

"Are you a friend of Yamato?"

His face suddenly lit up in a wonderful smile and suddenly she found herself enveloped within his arms.

There was something familiar about his scent and his hug and his hair- _what was it about him?_

"Yeah, I'm old friends with Yamato. And you too, Meems. Good to see you, it's been a while."

They separated after a brief moment and Mimi still couldn't quite place his name.

"Well it was nice to see you, too, er-"

"Taichi. Yagami Taichi, but you can call me Tai." Hmph. Still didn't really ring a bell. She was starting to get a little suspicious and took a tiny step back.

Mimi Tachikawa has had one too many stalkers in her life, and to _so conveniently_ meet someone again in a _psych ward_ of all places claiming to be a long lost friend just seemed too opportune to have been chance.

"Remember summer camp that one year that-you know what? Never mind. It was good to see you again, Meems."

Summer camp? Summer camp, summer camp, summer camp-suddenly she remembered!

"Yes! Goggles! And those horrid socks that came all the way up to the knees! Wow, look at you! Don't you clean up nice!"

He grinned that wonderful grin and hugged her again, this time lifting her up from the floor and swinging her around in a circle.

She laughed loudly as he nuzzled his stubble-rough chin against her forehead. She hadn't thought he'd remember her after all these years, after all she couldn't even recognize his name.

 _Oh but I do leave an impression. He must have been in love with me this whole time!_

"Yeah goggles! At least I wasn't wearing that god-awful pink dress." Mimi playfully swatted at Tai's arm as she pouted.

"I _loved_ that pink dress. Don't know what ever happened to it though, only ever got to wear it that one day."

"One day, huh? Ever wonder what you did in that one day to destroy that dress?" His eyes twinkled in the dying rays of the sun and she shook her head slowly.

 _Come to think of it, what happened that day? We went to summer camp, it snowed, we went back home…_

"How'd you know it was destroyed?" He shrugged and rubbed at the back of his neck, staring down at her. They were silent for a moment, quietly basking in each other's gazes.

"Well, let me help you with these. Here to visit someone?" Taichi bent down and easily grabbed the bags she'd been carrying.

"Yeah, actually I'm here to see my grandfather. He's a long term inpatient here."

Taichi made a sympathetic face and led her gently out of the room with his hand on the small of her back.

"Sorry to hear that. Why I don't I go with you to see your grandfather and then maybe we can catch up over coffee?"

* * *

Taichi was actually glad Mimi's grandfather had been fast asleep when they stopped into his room.

Turns out her grandfather was the yeller of the floor and god forbid he have a panic attack- that old man could _yell_ for hours. Cute as he was, Taichi wanted to stuff an old gym sock in his mouth.

Where the fuck was that old guy getting all the energy to scream like that anyways?

He shrugged, starting to sweat profusely as he and Mimi approached the locked double doors.

Taichi had gotten dressed on a whim, tired of wearing that fucking hospital gown like a little old lady and was just going to wait for his sister and Takeru to come back when Mimi happened to wander into his room.

What the actual fuck? Like how the hell did this girl, who he hasn't seen in a decade by the way, just happen to come into the wrong fucking room?

 _I mean her grandfather's been here for the last year, if I'm hearing correctly._

Fate. It was cheesy but there was no other explanation.

How else could he explain getting into that accident, getting his memories back, having _Jyou_ of all the medical students in the emergency room tend to him, having _Mimi_ just walk back into his life (literally, she just waltzed right back in), Hikari and Takeru dating.

 _There's no fucking way that's all just coincidence._

 _Even if that little shit just made that shit up to please me. Wait, unless he's not making it up? Or-_

 _Tai! Goddamn it, focus!_

 _Most pressing at the moment (or more so than that Takeru, the little shit, at the very least), how am I going to get out of this prison?_

There were two sets of doors that were locked and unless the nurse buzzed you out or you knew the code, no one was getting out.

 _Maybe I should just go back to my room. It'll be so embarrassing if I get caught trying to escape especially with Mimi here._

But he _so_ did not want the pretty girl beside him to know he had been admitted for schizophrenia, of all things.

And she was goddamn beautiful. Sure, she was a pretty cute albeit annoying kid in the Digital World but grown up? HOT DAMN.

"Er, Meems? I think I'm just going to go ba-," he watched her warily as she confidently strode up to the small black box next to the door and punched in a set of numbers.

To his utter amazement, a small green light indicating the doors have been unlocked flicked on.

A wide grin spread across Taichi's face as he followed her closely through the two sets of doors lest they close and lock him back inside, and he found himself praying the rest of his escape would go off without a hitch.

"Huh? Tai, did you say something?" Mimi turned to face him, her pretty round forehead just a hair's breadth away from his lips, her thin bony shoulder pressing into his chest and the swell of her bottom against his upper thigh.

The sudden closeness surprised them both and Mimi flinched away, blushing, resuming a normal, socially acceptable personal bubble of space between the two. Taichi had to admit her response was a tad disappointing.

 _If I hadn't been so concentrated on getting out of there, I could have probably kissed her._

 _Although if it's the same Mimi Tachikawa as the 10 year old one, it's a most probably a blessing I didn't. God knows what would have happened to me._

Tai shuddered at the thought before shaking his head, smiling. "No, I just said I might have to use the bathroom."

Mimi nodded, "yeah, there's a bathroom in the lobby. We can probably use that one, it's a lot nicer than any of the guest bathrooms on the floors, believe me.

"So _anyways,_ I've been back in Japan for about 3 years and I'm going to school here in Tokyo. I have a year left before I graduate but I have no idea what I want to do, my parents want me to come back to America and give up my modelling career but-" _Jesus, but this girl talks a lot._

Taichi nodded and _uh-huh_ 'd the chattery girl as he ushered her out of the revolving glass doors of the hospital.

They were just clearing the doors when-

 _OH SHIT._

"Mimi! RUN!"

* * *

 _Hehehe So Taichi breaks out from the Psych Ward! Apparently, according to my coworker who was the unit manager of such a ward, patients break out all the time and apparently, they usually only ever get to the elevators. So go Taichi!_

* **ALSO** the experiences that Taichi goes through is based off of my own grandfather's experience in the Psych Ward lock down unit. It's not a pleasant place and I feel terrible for the patients there (and GOD knows how terrible we felt for my grandpa!) but the people who do become admitted in such a unit really do need the help and I feel it helps them. It's helped my grandfather, that's for sure! So please don't take offense!

And I'm having a little too much fun writing this, this is crack, unrealistic but whatever. For fiction's sake, in this Digi-universe of mine, hospitals and law enforcement will be much different :)

AND **Yoshi's Kun** \- thank you for your insightful comment! I had forgotten about Hikari's remembering everything and of her breakdown in the novels so what a nice catch! You've a keen eye! Hikari will be quite involved because I love her and she and Tai have such cute interactions! As to your question regarding why Taichi gave up soccer? Well since this is supposed to about young adults trying to find footing after school, Taichi did the same as most all the young adults in my area: give up their dreams for more realistic ambitions that will (hopefully) land a job.

(Although even with good professions and a degree, jobs are hard to come by in the tri-state area :T But yeah, there can only be so many soccer players in the world)

Thanks for reading! Please read and review! :)


	3. Chapter 3

Becoming Tai

Disclaimer: Don't own Digimon

A/N: thanks for all the love, reviews and kind words! life got super busy but I'm (kinda) back lol! Story's a little slow to pick up but I have a lot planned for this so please enjoy and leave a review :)

* * *

Sora rushed into the hospital and spotted the anxious brunette girl pacing the lobby, the girl's father and boyfriend sitting just behind her in faux leather armchairs talking to a few police officers.

"Hikari! What happened?" She was pretty out of breath, having sprinted over to the hospital straight after work. The redhead had stayed behind just a little later than usual, perfecting her powerpoint presentation on her next project when she'd gotten the frantic call from her best friend's little sister.

Sora was sweaty and flushed and she cringed to think how wet her blouse would be under her blazer. _WHY do they make us wear these corporate uniforms when we are a FASHION marketing company? They should let us express our creative selves, ugh, this is so unfunctional in the summer!_

The petite girl rushed over and grabbed Sora in a fierce hug. Apparently Hikari didn't mind the dampness-and after a brief hesitation, the redhead returned the hug.

"We shouldn't have left him alone-it was just for a few minutes-and I was so angry at the moment-"

"Kari, babe, calm down and tell me exactly what happened?"

Hikari took a deep breath and steadied herself although her warm chocolatey eyes still retained a frenzied look.

"So TK and I were visiting Taichi around an hour and a half ago and you know, TK starting pulling this little prank on my brother. We go outside to talk for about ten, fifteen minutes and when we returned, Tai wasn't in the room," the girl shifted her gaze over to where a pudgy officer sat writing on a tablet while the other officer was looking at her father's phone.

"We waited for around 5 minutes, you know maybe he went to the bathroom or something, yeah? But then we got suspicious and TK checked the bathroom and it was empty and the dining room, nurses' station, exercise room and Tai wasn't there. So we told the nurses and the nurses checked the video feed and-and" Sora rummaged through her purse before pulling out a pack of kleenex tissue. She handed her friend some to dab at her large eyes and nodded at her to continue.

"It was all caught on tape, Tai dressed in his suit and walking right out of the ward with some woman. And the hospital went on lockdown but it was too late. There's footage of him leaving the hospital, too."

Oh. It sounded pretty run of the mill and something Taichi would do. Sora was slightly surprised at how upset Hikari was since she usually was so...so cool about everything. But then again, this was her brother. _I suppose I would be upset, too, if it was my brother missing._

"Poor thing. But hey, that doesn't sound too bad now, does it? I mean people leave the hospital against medical advice all the time and they're fine."

Hikari shook her head sadly as she once again looked towards the men. The officers' brows were knit in concentration as they spoke with Mr. Yagami and a strange sensation settled in Sora's gut.

"Don't tell me he-he's," Sora's voice crawled to a whisper, her large ruby eyes widened in shock, "is Taichi...was there an accident? Oh god forbid, don't tell me's hurt or-" _Dead_ , Sora added grimly to herself, her mouth suddenly so dry it felt like she'd just stuffed it with cotton balls.

Hikari whipped her gaze back to Sora so quickly she was taken aback.

"No! Of course not! It's just...well if a patient gets committed to a psych ward like how...how Tai did, then there's this whole process of getting released with a court order and such. But the real problem is, the doctors said he was a threat to himself and others so because he left with that woman, they're calling it a possible abduction."

Abduction? That doesn't make sense! That doesn't really sound like Tai- _doesn't sound like him at all._

"And her parents are talking about pressing charges. There's nothing they could _do_ until we find out for sure but apparently things have been suspicious with her for a while. That's them over there, the frantic lady and I'm going to guess that's her father, I'm not really sure though. He's not taken those sunglasses off once since they got here."

Sora looked over to where a rail thin flashy woman paced the lobby in heels while a tall man with dark perfectly coiffed hair spoke rapidly into his phone, a pair of fashionable round sunglasses perched high on his nose.

"No, that's ridiculous. Taichi wouldn't hurt a fly, if anything he probably smooth talked her into a date or something. Have you checked all the nearby bars and hotels?"

The younger girl shook her head as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"But this is where things kinda get weird, Sor. Apparently the lady Tai walked out with is _Vivi_ model Mimi Tachikawa and the police found her cellphone in a trash can a block from here. When her parents got the call, they said they were already in Japan from America where they live-apparently-because _someone else_ has been living in her apartment here in Tokyo and they couldn't get into contact with her."

Sora nodded, her ruby red eyes almost unfocused-Mrs. Tachikawa's pacing was quite hypnotic actually- and took a moment to process all of the information.

 _Taichi managed to get Mimi Tachikawa?! Where would he go?! God, sometimes he's so shallow, I mean, MIMI?! Really?! She's so...flaky though. Like that apartment and cell phone-so flaky!_

 _Darn it Tai! Where the hell are you?!_

* * *

 _Previously at the Hospital_

"Wait, _haa_ , what-what is the matter?" Mimi was panting as she pulled on Tai's hand to a stop.

Tai looked back at the lithe girl bent down at her hips, her hands on her knees (incidentally, she was grasping his hand tightly in one of her own which meant the side of his hand was _also_ against the soft silky skin of her thigh-not that Taichi was paying much attention to the texture of said thigh).

Her face was flushed a bright pink from the exertion and her honeyed eyes glared at him through stray hairs falling over her face.

"I, er, the security guard was coming after us." _Fuck, that just sounded really lame._

Apparently, Mimi thought so too and the tall brunet winced as the model rolled her eyes.

"Really? _That's_ why you dragged me halfway down the street? Tai, that wasn't even a security guard, it was the _valet parking attendant._ "

His warm chocolatey eyes lit up in happiness.

"You have a car?! Wow, that's amazing!"

"Um, well, no not exactly but I do have a ride, if that's what you're asking." Taichi grinned as he placed his arm around her shoulders. The model looked at him quizzically but made no move to remove his arm and they turned back towards the valet attendant.

"A _Vespa?_ You ride a fu-freaking Vespa?!" Taichi stared at the pastel pink scooter, a white helmet hanging off one of the handles.

Mimi shrugged as she pulled herself onto the small scooter. "Yeah, I told you, it's not a car but it gets me from point A to point B and besides, it's cute."

Taichi rolled his eyes. Ride or not, he was seriously wondering if he should just hightail it, with or without Mimi.

 _Seriously. It's not even a motorcycle. It's a fucking scooter. In pink._

Although if he was to be truly honest with himself, it should have come as absolutely no surprise that a girl like Mimi would drive a vehicle _just so._

 _Or rather ride. God, why couldn't it have been a motorcycle? Or at least a more...neutral color?!_

"Are you coming or not?" A pink helmet matching the white one that Mimi fit over her hair was thrusted at Taichi and he stared at it for a moment. Taichi swallowed nervously, clearing his throat.

"Um, can I wear the white one instead?"

Mimi rolled her eyes at him. Again.

"Listen, you want my help or not? Because I know what you're trying to pull and I can just as easily alert the _real_ security guards standing there that you've escaped."

 _Sheesh, what the fuck?_

Taichi scrambled for the helmet and hastily placed it over his big unruly hair. The helmet was a tad small and it was a demasculinizing pink with-oh god-black hearts on the side but the alternative?

"Hey, no need to get your panties in a bunch. Pink is one of my favorite colors, yeah," he nervously chuckled as he swallowed his pride and swung his leg over the small vehicle behind her, "and uh, I totally don't mind riding behind you as I hold onto you for dear life."

Tai reached around her, his hands resting around her hips. _GOD,_ who would have thought whiny, spoiled Princess Mimi would grow up to be such a strong, confident, sexy woman?

Mimi revved the engine on the pitiful ride and Taichi nuzzled his face against her back as they set off. It felt a little wrong, especially considering he technically only just met her, but he couldn't help it.

It was the familiarity of the girl, thanks to his restored memories of the Digital World, coupled with the fact that hey, she was _hot._ And Taichi was a healthy, normal male who was used to being in the company of women.

And besides, her hair smelled so nice, floral-ly and fruity with hints of vanilla and musk.

And she was so warm. And soft.

And they went all but a block before she pulled over to the side.

"Huh? Why are we stopping?" Taichi pulled himself away as she reached into a little crossbody bag and pulled out a buzzing phone.

"Phone call," She murmured as she stepped off the bike. Mimi kept her back turned to him as she examined her phone before promptly tossing the thing into the garbage.

 _The fuck!? What was that about?!_

"Sorry about that. Hey, you know how to drive a scooter?" Mimi smirked as she nudged him with her foot to scoot forward. Taichi complied, still a little shocked from the thought of just fucking throwing a phone away.

When the back seat was empty, she climbed back on, wrapping her slender arms around his waist and snuggling against his back.

"Ok, go. I'll tell you where to go."

"Where are we going?"

"My place."

 _Oh._

 _Alrighty then._

* * *

Mimi blushed as she thought of how bothered she became with that darn Taichi nuzzling the spot on the nape of her neck, while his arms encircled her waist.

It had been almost too much and at the faint buzzing from her phone, she'd gratefully pulled over, being careful not to show her reddened face to the handsome brunet she'd had the fortune of running into.

 _Crazy or not, he's so cute!_

Besides, her gut told her that he was to be trusted, that she _knew_ him-quite intimately at that too-and Mimi Tachikawa always trusted her gut. She felt so comfortable around him and it was crazy but she felt safe and protected.

 _Ugh, am I crazy? I'm going along with this guy just because we met each other for ONE day back when we were preteens?! Just because a man's beautiful does not mean you can just automatically assume he's a good person! This is madness!_

But-but she figured she could use a little crazy in her life. Everything had been too perfect. It was boring. He seemed perfectly normal and Mimi guessed he was there due to depression or some other shit like that.

Even she'd been on the psychiatric ward, for possible eating disorders-and she was all right now.

And _God help him if he tries anything stupid-that's what tasers are for!_

Mimi had fumbled with her little Chanel crossbody and she'd sighed in annoyance when she'd seen who was calling her, although it hadn't surprised her one bit.

 _Yamato Ishida_

Her beautiful on-again-off-again but now permanently off boyfriend of 4 years.

He was now her roommate, best friend, friend with benefits-eh, their relationship was complicated.

And she did not want to deal with him at the moment. The easiest solution would be to ignore the damn thing but then again, the last time she dared to ignore him, he'd tracked her. And had one of his managers burst into a luxury spa.

A wrought iron public trash can caught her attention and she smirked. Technically, if she _lost_ the damn thing, he couldn't get mad at her. And he'd make sure the phone was recovered too. Heh.

 _Sorry, Yama dear! I'll make it up to you later!_

For now, she had another interest in mind. Mimi briefly wondered if she should have picked up his call, after all she _was_ going to be bringing home a different male and it _was_ still technically Yamato's place.

 _But he's away on tour and he won't be back and what he doesn't know won't kill him and besides, we're not going to do anything. Nothing at all. Just maybe get changed, go out for some drinks. Or coffee. Whatever._

But the beautiful girl pushed all thoughts out of her mind as Taichi revved up her scooter and she giggled girlishly as the sudden movement threw her against Tai's broad shoulders and his muscular back.

Mimi tilted her chin up so she could rest it on his shoulder, her nose breathing in the faint remnants of his cologne and aftershave mixed with a masculine musky scent.

 _Oh yeah. This was better, much better._

* * *

Taichi huffed as he paced the large, spacious modern apartment with panoramic views of Tokyo's fashionable Shibuya district.

 _Of course it figures a guy like Yamato Ishida would have everything all settled in life-fancy expensive apartment, huge paydays and a hot girlfriend._

 _What the hell. And I was the leader of our little pack in the Digital World-that little fucker couldn't keep it together for half a second before running away and now he's Mister I'm-a-rockstar-kiss-the-floor-I-stand._

A crystal decanter filled with an amber brown liquid caught Taichi's eye and he meandered over to the glittery white granite counter where two crystal glasses stood at attention.

It was so, so tempting to just have a quick swig-even without the ice to dilute the stuff-such was the tremendous stress weighing down on Taichi's head.

 _I swear, even my hair's feeling flat-damn that stress. I better not go bald from this shit. But I should keep my senses. No telling what'll happen._

"Tai? What are you-oh! Sorry, I guess I didn't offer anything to drink, huh? You can help yourself to the whiskey or anything else in the fridge for that matter." Mimi waltzed into the room, holding a length of black fabric in her hands.

"I just need to get changed and then we can hit up some bars in the area, sound good?" She giggled as she winked at him, her long caramel curls falling seductively over her face.

Taichi blinked. _Bars? No, I need to get the fuck out of here before I get caught by the police._

Mimi suddenly planted herself in front of Tai and swept her long hair up with one fluid swoop. The brunet stared at the back of Mimi's delicate neck, the graceful curve of her spine against the creamy unblemished skin. Somewhere in the apartment the phone began to ring.

"Be a dear and unclasp the hook, will you? I can't seem to reach."

A blush threatened to creep across Tai's face as he noticed just how large his hands were in comparison to the girl before him, and how rough his hands were against her soft skin.

 _Ah fuck. I don't have time for this…_

The call went into voicemail.

" _Hello, this is the Tokyo Police Department looking for Miss Mimi Tachikawa, it is important that you contact us immediately-"_

 _HOLY FUCKING SHIT!_

Blind, white-hot panic seared through Taichi in an instant and before he knew what he was doing, Tai'd unzippered the rest of Mimi's dress and was tugging the damn thing above her head and shoulders.

"WHAT-TAI! What the hell are you doing?!" She yelled, her eyes furious. Despite being dressed in only her underwear, Mimi made no move to cover herself and staunchly placed her hands on her hips.

"Mimi, look, no time to explain," Taichi rambled as he grabbed the black fabric from her hands-he guessed it was the dress she'd wanted to change into (and he was right! It _was_ a dress!)-and hastily began pulling it down over her head.

"Oh my god-Tai! Wait, hold on this is ridiculous!" Mimi glared, her eyes narrowed to deadly slits as her hair now all messed up bunched out from under the dress.

He'd put it on her backwards.

 _Fuck._

 _Just fuck. What happens to people when they jailbreak from the psych ward?_

"Tai, let me handle this." The angry expression suddenly dropped from the girl's face and she stormed over to the phone and redialed the fucking police.

 _She's going to call the police on me?! OMFG, MIMI!_

Taichi lunged for the phone but with all the grace of one used to avoiding manhandling by fans (and anti-fans, after all she _was_ the girlfriend- _ex_ -girlfriend of one Yamato Ishida), Mimi Tachikawa ducked away and twirled around him.

"Yes, police department? This is Mimi Tachikawa, you had called?" Her airy voice broke out into the silence and Taichi stood grumpily staring at the model.

She turned around, stuck a tongue out at him and mouthed, _I'm on hold._

 _Hold? Oh good._ Taichi bounced up and down on his heels from nervous energy, contemplating whether or not he should go over and try to get the phone again when Mimi turned around.

"Yes, this is she. Detective Matsuda? How can I help you?" Tai's brown eyes watched the girl as she swept her hair out from under the hastily pulled on dress. The light dancing off the shiny curls held him almost in a trance as he ran various horrible scenarios through his head.

 _I get arrested and committed to the mental ward for life._

 _I do something stupid and Mimi doesn't want to see me ever again._

 _I'm_ actually _crazy and I've just made up everything-Agumon, the Digital World-everything._

The thought of Agumon not actually existing made his heart ache and Taichi quickly discounted that last thought.

"MmHmm. Yes, we're old friends, we went to summer camp together, you know?" She drew tiny circles on the counter as her eyes crinkled into a smile.

"Oh yes, it was lovely, I went with him to have a few drinks, you know catch up-did you know he and Yamato are also friends? It's a small world, isn't it?

"Hmm? Oh, he's perfectly fine, I had no idea that he was admitted for mental issues. No, no he didn't threaten me at all, in fact the whole thing was my idea. Oh please drop the charges!" Mimi winked at Taichi as she smirked.

 _WTF. THREATEN?! Charges?!_

"Yes? Oh thank you! Yes, please let my parents know and I'll give them a call as well...Mhm, I understand. Oh I can certainly try to get him back, yes I know. I'm terribly sorry, you know, I hadn't meant to break the law but I was just _so_ happy to see him that I-

What's that? Oh, you've found my phone! That's wonderful, I was wondering where that thing had gone! You're a dear, can I go pick it up sometime tomorrow?"

There was a pause and Taichi felt his eyes grow rounder and rounder from surprise. The conversation actually seemed to be going well, all things considered.

"Oh the apartment-you've found out about my naughty little secret too then? Yes, well. I've been living with, well, you know, my boyfriend and didn't want my parents to know. I know, I'll apologize-they are? Aww but I've already got plans tonight, very important. I won't be able to see them until next week."

She listened for a bit, her eyes glazing over.

"Yes, I'll give them a call. Thank you very much for checking up on me, I'm fine. Thank you and have a good evening."

Mimi hung up the phone triumphantly and grinned as she tossed the phone to Tai.

"See? I told you I'd handle it."

"Damn. It's because you're famous."

She frowned as she pulled the dress the right way forward. "I like to think it's because I'm nice and _polite_ on the phone."

"You, um, you lied to the police."

"Uh huh. But _technically_ it wasn't a lie. I knew what I was getting into and besides, I promised I'd get you back by tonight. Or you know, early next morning, same thing." She grinned as she sauntered off into a darkened hallway.

Taichi rolled his eyes but didn't say anything in protest. He placed the phone back in it's cradle and followed the model into her room...or should it be called _Mimi and Yamato's_ room.

The first thing he noticed was the huge ass portrait of the moody bastard brooding on the wall above a white sheeted king sized bed.

The second thing he noticed was that well, there was a freaking king sized bed. Wow. He'd always wanted to sleep in a large bed like that.

Taichi nonchalantly sat on the edge of the bed as the model sat down at a vanity and began to fix her makeup.

 _Now what?! What do I do now?! Damn it, maybe I should just go back to the hospital now and save myself the trouble of being taken there like a goddamn kindergartener on the first day of school._

The thought of being dropped off back at the mental ward by Mimi, no less, welled up a terrible bout of acid reflux.

 _Or...on second thought, I haven't eaten anything substantial all day-that's probably what the acid reflux is from._

But still, Mimi driving him back to the hospital (in a pink Vespa of all things-it still bruised the tattered remains of his manly ego to have rode one) after a night out was a fucking shitty ending to a rather shitty day.

He probably wouldn't even get a kiss out of it- _wait, this is not important! Focus, Tai!_

They sat in silence for a moment as Taichi watched the model affix lashes on to eyes-they kind of looked like caterpillars, not that he'd ever tell her of course, but then something came to his mind.

"Mimi?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you still like your eggs with maple syrup and cherries?"

Mimi turned around to stare at Tai, her one eye undone as she absentmindedly set the eyelashes down on her vanity.

"Wow. I haven't thought about that in a long, long time. How'd you know I liked my eggs with maple syrup?"

Taichi shrugged. He cursed himself silently for even bringing up the damn line spoken by the model once long ago, a bunch of kids eating eggs crudely cooked and thinking of home.

"Never mind. It's just something stupid." Mimi stood up and walked over to Taichi, her eyes studying him like he was a dark smudge on her pristine white bed.

 _Oh wait._

"Liar. Have you been stalking me?" Her beautiful big doe eyes narrowed and he swallowed nervously.

"NO. Why would I be stalking you? I just _know_."

"Uhhuh. That's what they all say. Ugh and I thought you were _different,_ Tai." Long manicured fingers picked up a phone and began to dial numbers.

 _Shit! Is she calling the police?!  
_

"Wait, Mimi! I, well, ah shit this is going to sound super crazy but we know each other. Really, really well." He'd taken a few large strides to grip the girl by her shoulders. To her credit, she seemed totally unfazed by his reaction, glaring at him with oddly mismatched eyes (holy shit! The eyelashes _did_ make a difference) before subtly shrugging him off while tucking her hair behind her ears.

"That's better. Now, I'm going to order in some fried chicken and you are going to tell me _everything_."

She brought the phone back up to her ear.

"Hello? Yes, I'd like to order delivery?" _What?! Really?!_

The surprise must've been evident because she smirked at him, covering the mouthpiece of the phone.

"What? You think I called the police?" She whispered, caramel eyes twinkling with mischief.

"Well?! I don't know! Shit, you almost gave me a heart attack!" Taichi couldn't help it. A fucking cheesy smile spread across his face in giant relief as he ran his hands through his hair.

Sticking a tongue out at him, she turned back to ordering chicken- _thank god, I'm so fucking hungry._

* * *

Argh. Mimi had a blinding, pounding headache. _GOD_ this was the grandmother of all headaches, the mother of all hangovers and-oh god- if someone didn't turn off the world, she was going to murder someone!

An ear splitting groan increased the pressure in her head and Mimi angrily wondered who dared make such an ungodly sound until she realized the groaning was from herself.

SHIT.

 _What the hell happened?!  
_

A warm hand caressed her bare shoulder as a familiar scent washed over her.

 _Think girl, think! What the hell happened?_

Ok so there was this beautiful bronzed guy-Taichi! And-and she helped him escape! Twice!

Something about a giant fighting cactus that turned into a lily fairy-and Irish Car Bombs! Yum, Baileys! And-

And then-and then what?

She frowned. Oh right. _We need to go, we need to find him-he'll remember too, I'm sure!_ Mimi remembered saying.

 _Find who?_

"Babe? You ok?" _No, no I'm not ok. I have a horrible pounding behind my eyes and the world won't stop spinning and I can't even remember where I am._

And then they'd traveled like Bonnie and Clyde through the night on the Harley to reach-

"YAMATO!" _Ugh! Not a good idea!_

Mimi sat up suddenly, all the memories of the night before rushing back.

Beside her, someone chuckled, a low soothing sound that was at once familiar and comforting.

"Yeah, I'm here. You finally decided to get up?" The bright light pierced the back of her head but she forced herself to keep her eyes open as she strained to focus them on the blurry figure before her.

Golden blonde hair and ocean blue eyes sharpened into view and she smiled at the sight of her ex.

"Morning honey, what time is it?" She mumbled as she closed her eyes again. Mimi felt his arms go around her and she leaned in gratefully against his solid form, her head cuddling against _her_ space between his throat and chest.

"It's about 2 in the afternoon. And we have to check out in about-" He paused and rubbed her shoulders. _Heh, that feels nice._

"Well, we actually missed the check out time. By 4 hours. But we need to get on the road in around 2 hours so I'll give you time to get ready. And here's some water and crackers for your hangover."

He pulled away briefly and Mimi mumbled in protest until he was near again, this time pressing a glass against her lips.

She took the water gratefully and had a few bites of the crackers.

"Thank you, you're a saint." Mimi kissed the side of his neck, and smiled against him as she felt his own smile against her temple. They sat together silently for a few more moments until Yamato cleared his throat.

"You know, Mi, you brought an interesting person with you last night." Yamato started but Mimi hushed him with her fingers against his lips.

"Shh, Yama, you're making my head pound."

"No seriously. Where did you even meet him? Yagami Taichi of all people. I used to hate the guy back in high school." Mimi pulled away then, forcing her eyes open as she recalled vaguely what transpired.

 _-Umm I have to go back to the hospital, remember? I can't exactly go back wasted._

 _-Nonsense! You can't have chicken without beer! That's almost sinning. Here, have it with some whiskey and Bailey's-it's so good like this! Now what were you saying? We were being chased by a giant red beetle named Kuwagamon?  
_

 _-Wow, Mimi, you got his name right on one go? I'm impressed._

 _-Well I was there, wasn't I? Anyways so we fall into the river and then?_

 _-Then we met this giant Digimon named Shellmon and it attacked us like what the fuck?! So naturally Agumon and I started to fight back and he evolved again into this giant orange dinosaur named Greymon-_

 _-A dinosaur? a t-rex? Or like a brontosaurus?_

 _-A t-rex, obviously. Can you imagine a brontosaurus attacking a Shellmon?!_

He was so cute, telling his story. Mimi remembered believing that his stories actually had happened to her last night, the account was so vivid (and quite frankly, she had been a bit flattered to think he'd thought up everything!) although now that it was daytime, it was probably all the booze in her system.

That Taichi Yagami was a fabulous adventure fanfiction writer, of that she was positive. A major fanboy for sure-although she wouldn't mind terribly having him as a friend.

"Taichi. Where did you put him, Yama?"

Yamato groaned as he rolled his eyes.

"Why were you even with him? He's sharing the other room with my manager. Just came up to me like we were bros or something."

She smiled. His possessiveness was endearing, even if they'd broken up a while back. _Old habits die hard,_ _I guess._

"Well you must've been sorta close, no? You knew his last name." Mimi slid off the bed, pulling on a black button down shirt-Yamato's- while hobbling her way over to the door.

He followed after her.

"That's besides the point. He was a douche back then. Soccer star extraordinaire with a horde of girls always following him around. Such a cocky, pretentious bastard."

"Switch out 'soccer' with 'rock' and it sounds like someone I know." Mimi winked at Yamato while pulling on a pair of destroyed dark rinse jeans she found in his suitcase. Yamato scowled as he leaned against a wall, his arms crossed over his (bare) chest.

The frown softened as he continued to stare at her and she felt uncharacteristically self-conscious.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Really, what is it?"

"Nothing. It's just...sometimes it just feels like we haven't, you know."

She allowed a teeny, tiny smile to grace her lips before she left the room.

* * *

Taichi was leaning on the balcony rail, dressed in the same grey suit without the jacket and tie, his cuffs rolled up and collar loosened.

Mimi seemed to believe him last night and it surprised him how much _she_ seemed to remember as well but now he thought maybe it was from being fucking wasted.

 _And shit, I didn't go back to the hospital. Oh wells. What are they going to do anyways? Arrest me?_

"Tai?"

He straightened as he turned back to see the girl, dressed in a black shirt so large it seemed to swallow her, stepping onto the balcony. The air picked up her long caramels curls and for a moment, she was so fucking beautiful it hurt to look.

"Hey, good morning."

"Yeah, good morning to you, too. How are you um, feeling?" She crossed over to stand next to him, close enough that while he could feel the warmth radiating off her body, the stench of a male scent off her clothes made him recoil just the slightest.

 _Probably that damn Yamato's._

Taichi sneaked a glance over to see if she noticed but if she did, no indication was given.

"Other than a raging hangover and waking up in a random ass hotel room with some _guy_ much less, I feel pretty good. You?" She smiled as she leaned her head against his shoulder. _Ahh there it was-that flowery, fruity Mimi scent._

(It was notable to Taichi that Mimi smelled just _so_ as he was used to Sora who always smelled fresh, like cut grass and citrus, Hikari who smelled like warm laundry and his mother, who smelled like _home._ )

"Ugh, I'm never going to mix beer and whiskey again. This is terrible." Mimi whined playfully as Tai wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"For the record, that one was all you. I wasn't even going to drink, remember?"

"Shut up. I know you liked it."

"...Yeah, ok. So it was pretty good. First time having Baileys, actually." She twisted in his hold to look up at him, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Really? Well, stay with me and I'll introduce you to more than just creme liqueur." The comment took Taichi by surprise and he looked down to gauge exactly what Mimi meant.

A wink, a sly smile-anything to indicate she'd said it in a flippant manner but nope.

She looked serious for once and he swallowed nervously. In his memory, he might have had a crush on her back in the Digital World.

(Actually, he had a crush on Sora, but nothing ever came of it. It was part laziness, mostly cowardice. He'd found out that she had a crush on Yamato Ishida, the bastard, back in middle school and for fear of rejection never pursued anything. It exasperated Koushiro, who had encouraged Taichi to be more courageous but well. Anyways, it was a long time ago and now she was one of the bros.)

"Well lucky you, once I figure I like something, I'm incredibly hard to get rid of, kinda like bed bugs." He grinned and she rolled her eyes but a laugh escaped her anyways.

"Ok then, bed bug. We have to get going. I think Yamato's headed to Fukuoka so we can either stay with them or go anywhere you'd like. Your call, captain."

"Tempting but I should probably head back to the hospital."

"Who cares about the hospital? People discharge themselves all the time. Do what _you_ want to do, Tai."

It was so strange to think she used to be so prissy, snotty and sheltered once. This carefree, bohemian girl with her easy, laid back ways was just something totally unexpected.

 _One would have assumed she'd have grown up to be a catty, vapid socialite._

In fact, it was a miracle he recognized her at all when she'd waltzed right into his life. He was suddenly so grateful to that darn Jyou for having him committed. He wouldn't have met Mimi again if not for that fluke.

(Although his blood still boiled when he thought of his friend accusing him of threatening him and holding him hostage when really, all Tai was doing was going over their adventures. Admittedly, Jyou was probably the worst one to talk to first as, come on, he was a nervous wreck about the whole thing but still. _Hostage? Threaten and assault?_ Sheesh, and they accused him of having a vivid imagination- _schizophrenia,_ they called it.)

Taichi shifted around so that he stood facing her, his hands running down her slender arms. She looked up at him curiously, her lips just slightly parted, perpetually a light pink.

He could kiss her. He _should_ kiss her.

Taichi bent his head down, moving to hold her up against him. She in turn went up on tip-toes, her hands travelling up first his torso and then chest.

"Yagami. I want to talk to you." A quarter of the ways down, Taichi stopped, rolling his eyes and scowling at the sound of his old school mate's voice.

Mimi giggled as she poked him in the chest. "Guess I'll see you later then, huh?"

She wriggled her way out of his arms and walked past Yamato, giving his arm a squeeze.

Yamato hardly acknowledged her as his glare was focused straight on Taichi.

The brunet straightened up, putting his hands on his waist as he nudged his chin toward the blonde.

"Ishida. It's good to see you again."

* * *

AN: I SWEAR IT'S A MICHI hahahahaha! Please excuse the random Mimato-ness, I guess I can't help myself sometimes haha!

Anyways, had Tai been admitted to a real psychiatric hospital (at least here in the US) no one would really care-definitely no charges, even if he left with Mimi. Maybe the social worker/case manager. Or if he was truly dangerous, like he actually physically assaulted someone but then there would be a guard assigned to keep an eye on him at all times. But for the sake of story, please bear with me!

Thanks for reading and please drop a review :)

Much love, everyone! :D


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